Russian General Bastrykin: Russia needs a new national ideology

The Chairman of the Investigative Committee of Russia, Alexander Bastrykin, stated at a conference on Thursday that the country needs to formulate a national idea and enshrine it in legislation. This was reported on the committee’s website.

“Ideology plays an extremely important role in the formation and functioning of the state and law,” Bastrykin said, after which he formulated the main aspects of what, in his opinion, should guide such an ideology’s development.

Firstly, the national idea should reflect the public interest of “strategic order or the long-term perspective,” he noted. Secondly, such should take into account historical traditions, the mentality of the people, the geopolitical position of the country, and its economy, demography, and ecology. In addition, such an ideology should cover all spheres of public life: the socio-political, economic, and spiritual, the head of the committee concluded.

In early February, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that there should be no other unifying idea in the country other than patriotism. In the words of the head of state, this national idea should be tied to “a common unifying element,” and not the activities of some kind of political party.

In the summer of 2015, Putin also remarked that patriotism is “the sacred duty of Russians,” which in October he called “a moral beacon” for youth.